Electric-railway motor



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

G. J. VAN DEPOELE.

ELECTRIC RAILWAY MOTOR. No. 462,751. Patented Nov. 10,1891.

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(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

G. J. VAN DEPOELE.

ELECTRIC RAILWAY MOTOR.

No. 462,751. Patented Nov. 10,1891.

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Qmitmeoaaa Charles J. YZmUepaeLe agw. OQCWVQ By UNITED STATES PATENTOFFIcE.

CHARLES J. VAN DEPOELE, OF LYNN, MASSACHUSETTS.

ELECTRIC-RAILWAY MOTOR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 462,751, dated November10, 1891.

Application filed December 20, 1890. Serial No. 375,308. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, CHARLES J. VAN DE- POELE, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at Lynn, in the county of Essex and State ofMassachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inElectric-Railway Motors, of which the following is a description,reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters andfigures of reference marked thereon.

My invention relates to improvements in electric motors forrailway-cars, together with various details of construction andarrangement entering into and forming part of the present improvedmethod of propulsion.

The invention comprises a form of motor which is carried directly uponthe axle to be driven, all intermediate power connections beingdispensed with. Ashereinafter set forth, my improved motor is of thecontinuous-current type, and is supplied in any desired manner withcurrent collected by a traveling contact device upon the vehicle from aconductor or conductors suspended or otherwise disposed along the lineof way. As shown in the drawings, each axle to be driven is providedwith its separate motor, and any desired number of the axles of thevehicle or vehicles may be so provided with motors, according tocircumstances.

In the drawings, Figure l is a diagrammatic view, partly in sideelevation, showing the two axles of a car-truck, each with one of itsdriving-wheels removed, and two motors, one on each axle, together withthe electrical cir cnits and connections for supplying current thereto.Fig. 2 is a side elevation ol an electric-railway car-truck equippedwith motors embodying the invention, parts of the truck being omittedfor convenience of illustration. Fig. 3 is an end view of a car-axle andits wheels, showing also one of my improved motors in longitudinalsectional elevation. Fig. 4 is an end view of an electric-railwaycartruck equipped with my improved motors. Fig. 5 is a detail showingthe buffer-springs and connections to the non-rotatingparts of themotor.

In the drawings, A represents a motor, which is constructed incylindrical form and supported upon the axle B to be driven.

wound.

C C are car-wheels fixed upon the axle B and arranged to run uponsuitable tracks.

The motors A are cylindrical in form, and, as indicated in Figs. 3 and4, may be of such length as to inclose all that part of the axle Bbetween the wheels 0 C.

The motor A comprises an exterior non-rotating field-magnet D, which isa Gramme ring elongated into the form of a cylinder and contained withinan exterior metallic envelope or casing or drum E. The drum E isprovided with metallic heads 6 c, which are sleeved upon the axle B soas to sustain the fieldmagnet D concentric therewith, and should ofcourse be provided with suitable bearings upon said axle to permit it torotate freely an d without undue friction. The drum E and field-magnetare prevented from rotating by a buffer-spring F, which bears againstsome stationary part of the truck and is connected with the drum E by athrust-rod f, secured in a suitable lugf upon the drum.

As indicated in Fig. 5, a double set of springs F and thrust-rods f maybe employed, if desired, the said thrust-rods and springs converging toa central point G, which has a rigid bearingupon the truck. By thesemeans a spring-controlled oscillating movement is allowed to the drumand field-magnet, which will relieve the strain and prevent or diminishjerking 011 stopping or starting the load.

\Vithin the field-magnet D and secured directly to the axle B is anarmature H, which, as here shown, is of the shuttle-wound type,sometimes called a Siemens II, although, of course, any desired form ofwinding which will have the desired effect may be substituted for thathere shown. The armature H has a central core 7t and enlargedpole-pieces I I,between which the energizing-coils J are The core of thearmature His fitted upon or secured to the axle B in any suitable mannerand so as to be rotatable within the field-magnet with its poles inclose proximity to the interior thereof.

The armature H is constantly energized by the supply-current and is incircuit therewith through conductors 1 and 2, which connect with thecontact-brushes j j, which are carried by the head e and sustained inoperative position upon separate insulated contact rings R R which aredisposed bet-ween one end of the armature H and thehead e and carriedupon an insulating-support R, which is'mechanically connected with thecore or pole-pieces of the armature, so as to be securely sustained andto rotate therewith.

The two motors seen in Fig. 1 are alike in all their parts; but forconvenience of illustration the end marked A in Fig. 3 is shown on onemotor, while the opposite end (marked 'A is shown on the other one. Thecontact brushes and rings just referred to are shown 111 said on the endof the motor-marked A Fig. 1, G is the generator, from the positive andnegative binding-posts of which extend line-conductors plus and minus,and these conductors may be arranged as is convenient. As shown,however, the minus conductor is connected with the track upon which thewheels 0 0' move, while the plus cond uetor is suspended above the lineof way in position to be engaged by a traveling contact K, carried by anupwardly-spring-pressed trolley-pole L. From the conductor carried bythe pole L the current passes by conductor 3 to a double-pole-reversingswitch M. The conductors l and 2 are connected with separate insulatedparts of the switch, so that, as shown, current from conductor 3 passesthrough switch-arm m, thence by conductor 1 to contactj, to ring R,thence into the armature, traversing the coils thereof and issuingthrough ring R contact j, and thence by conductor 2 to a separateinsulated switch-contact, upon which rests switch-arm on, completing thearmature-circuit.

The end A of the motor is provided with contact devices, these servingto convey currents to the coils of the field-magnet D. The saidfield-magnet is provided with a ring of insulated contacts or acommutator O at its extremity, said contacts being connected by suitableloops, each with the desired number of turns of the field-1nagnetwinding, and current is supplied to the field-magnet at points at rightangles to the poles of the armature by contact-brushes N P, carried byarms n 19, secured to the axis of the armature, but insulated therefrom.Current is supplied to the brush P by conductor 4, which is connectedthrough the head 6 to a contact 1),

- the rotation of the armature.

which engages a ring R carried upon an insulating-support R, which moveswith the armature. The support R also carries a second separatecontact-ring R, upon which bears the contact 71., which is sustained bythe head 6 and connected to a conductor 5, thus completing thefield-magnet circuit through the stationary contacts 19' 'n, rotatingrings R R rotating arms 19 n, and their brushes P N, which are movedabout the commutator Oby The conductor 2, leading from the armaturecircuit, is, as shown, connected by a switch-arm m and conductor 6 withthe moving terminal Q of a rheostat S, to the extremity of which theconductor 4: is connected. Conductor 5 is connected with thereturn-circuit. It will therefore be apparent that the current aftertraversing the coils of the armature H passes thence to the fieldmagnetcircuit through any desired portion of the resistance S, and that thedirection of rotation of the armature may readily be reversed-by meansof the switch M.

It will be understood that a counter-electro-motive-force device may besubstituted for the resistance S, and also that the fieldmagnet andarmature-coils may be connected in multiple are instead of in series, asjust described, or, in fact, in anyother desired relation. It will benoted that the circuits shown in Fig. l are that of but one motor, theopposite ends of which are shown. Ordinarily two motors will be used onone truck and the connections of Fig. 1 be duplicated. Suitable openingsmay be provided in the ends of extremities of thedrum E to give accessto the contact brushes, and various minor modifications may be made inthe detailsof the structure without departing from the spirit or naturethereof.

While Iconsider the present invention an important one, and theparticular motor hereinbefore described as a great advance in the art ofpropulsion of vehicles by electric power, it will be seen by referenceto my patent, No. 286,093, of October 2,1883, that the broad features ofthe invention have been already disclosed by me, and I therefore do notclaim the same, except in connection with a moving vehicle, incombination with which the invention possesses advantages and featuresof improvementnot set forth in my-said prior patent.

It will be understood thatan obvious modification of the foregoing wouldbe to reverse the relationship of the parts; in other Words,

to arrange the commutated part or member upon the armature instead ofthe field-magnet. Furthermore, that while I have described the movingcontact devices extending between one member and the other as being atright angles, that this is with the object of securing absolutely equalaction whichever way the armature is caused to rotate, although it isquite evident that the moving brushes might be displaced considerably ineither direction without preventing the operation of the machine,although when so displaced its action would be more effective in onedirection than in the other.

Having described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure byLetters Patent, 1s-

1. In an electric locomotive, the combination, with the driving-axle andwheels fixed thereto, of an armature fixed upon and carried by saidaxle, a circular field-magnet surrounding said armature, also carried bythe axle and journaled thereon, and means carried by the armature forshifting the polarity of the field in advance of the poles of saidarmature.

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2. In an electric locomotive, the combination, with the driving-axlethereof, of an armature fixed thereto, a circular field-magnetsurrounding said armature and carried by said axle, a commutator uponthe end of the field-coils, and contacts upon the armature rotatingtherewith for shifting the field of force of the field-magnet in advanceof the fixed poles of the armature.

In an electric motor, the combination, with the driving-axle thereof, ofan armature fixed thereto, a circular field-magnet surrounding saidarmature, a cylindrical shield to which said field-magnet is fixed, andheads for said cylindrical shield journaled upon the driving-axle.

4. In an electric locomotive, the combination, with the driving-axlesthereof, of a pair of motors having their armatures fixed upon saidaxles, field-magnets surrounding said armatures, cylindrical drumssurrounding said I field-magnets and adapted to support them upon theaxles, and diagonal connections between the upper and lower peripheriesof said drums, whereby they are prevented from rotating.

5. In an electric locomotive, the combination, with the driving-axle andwheels fixed thereto, of a armature fixed upon and carried by said axle,a circular field-magnet surrounding said armature, a drum surroundingthe field-magnet and supporting it upon the axle, and flexible supportsbetween the periphery of the drum and the locomotive-truck, saidsupports preyenting rotation of the fieldmagnet and drum.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two Witnesses.

CHARLES J. VAN DEPOELE. Witnesses:

JOHN W. GIBBONEY, CHAS. II. OLIN.

